Kuwait to introduce sales tax

Kuwait Upto Date • March 25, 2016 • 0 Comments

As per Arabtimes, He added the government confirmed its readiness to work towards economic reform, indicating the committee will try on Sunday to complete its final report regarding the document and its recommendations which will be submitted to the National Assembly for discussion on Tuesday.

Asked about updates on the proposed electricity and water charges based on consumption, Al-Shaye disclosed the government will submit a draft law in this regard to the committee on Sunday. He said the committee will deliberate on the draft law and other related proposals on the same day.

Kuwait plans to introduce sales tax in January 2018 in coordination with the Gulf Cooperation Council member states, says Gulf Business News quoting a senior government official. The move is expected to help the country diversify and boost income following the fall in oil revenues.

“All of us (the Gulf Cooperation Council countries) have decided to go for January 2018, although this has to pass through the National Assembly so it may take time,” Deputy Prime Minister, Finance Minister and acting Oil Minister Anas Al-Saleh was quoted as saying at the recent MEED conference. Kuwait may also look to cut subsidies in a bid to reduce spending, he added.

He went on to say, about 70 per cent of Kuwait government subsidies go to electricity and gasoline and the government is now keen to discuss the issue with the National Assembly. The minister also asserted that Kuwait will continue to move forward with its infrastructure projects despite the decline in oil prices. “We will continue to spend on our infrastructure projects, as planned.

We have never seen such high levels of capital expenditure (despite low oil prices). “We are focusing on infrastructure projects that work best and avoiding falling into the trap of economic stagnation because Kuwait’s economy depends on government expenditure. We are on full throttle and not holding back,” he added. Last year alone, Kuwait has awarded contracts worth $31 billion according to MEED Projects. It has also about $150 billion worth of planned projects in the pipeline.

Source : Arabtimes